Having a long-term, or chronic, illness can disrupt your life in many ways. You may often be tired and in pain. Your illness might affect your appearance or your physical abilities and independence. You may not be able to work, causing financial problems. For children, chronic illnesses can be frightening, because they may not understand why this is happening to them.
These changes can cause stress, anxiety and anger. If they do, it is important to seek help. A trained counselor can help you develop strategies to regain a feeling of control. Support groups might help, too. You will find that you are not alone, and you may learn some new tips on how to cope.
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Next Steps After Your Diagnosis: Finding Information and Support(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality) - http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/diaginfo.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/spdiagn/spdiagn.htm
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Self-Management: Taking Charge of Your Health(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/healthy/prevention/785.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/healthy/prevention/785.printerview.html
- Coping with Chronic Illness(National Institutes of Health, Clinical Center) - Links to PDF - http://www.cc.nih.gov/ccc/patient_education/pepubs/copechron.pdf
- One-Third of Uninsured Are Chronically Ill(08/04/2008, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_67745.html
- Anemia of Chronic Disease(Merck & Co., Inc.) - http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec14/ch172/ch172e.html
- Chroinc Illness and Emotional Wellness(American Psychological Association) - http://apahelpcenter.org/articles/article.php?id=119
- Request a Brown-Bag Check-Up(Institute for Safe Medication Practices) - http://www.ismp.org/Newsletters/consumer/alerts/BrownBag.asp
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Sexuality: Chronic Illness and Your Sex Life(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/articles/768.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/articles/768.printerview.html
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Chronic Disease(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Chronic+Disease%22
- Article: Effects of reaching the drug benefit threshold on Medicare members'... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18815534&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Titrating guidance: a model to guide physicians in assisting patients... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18779459&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Initial validation of the Argentinean Spanish version of the PedsQL... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18687134&tool=MedlinePlus
- Coping with Chronic Illness -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=chronic+disease[majr]+AND+(adaptation,psychological[majr]+OR+quality+of+life[majr]+OR+attitude+to+health[majr])+AND+humans[mh]+AND+english[la]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- American Chronic Pain Association - http://www.theacpa.org/
- National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/
- Chronic Disease Overview(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/overview.htm
- Chronic Illness and Siblings(American Academy of Pediatrics) - http://www.aap.org/publiced/BK5_ChronicIllness_Siblings.htm
- Chronic Illnesses and Sports(American Academy of Pediatrics) - http://www.medem.com/medlb/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZR6TN4W7C&sub_cat=405
- Coping with a Chronic Illness(American Academy of Pediatrics) - http://www.aap.org/publiced/BK5_ChronicIllness_Cope.htm
- How to Care for a Seriously Ill Child(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/parent/system/ill/seriously_ill.html
- Illness and Disability for Girls(National Women's Health Information Center) - http://www.girlshealth.gov/disability/
- Lessening Fears Associated with Chronic Illness(American Academy of Pediatrics) - http://www.medem.com/MedLB/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZ6KYZP8FC&sub_cat=107
- Maintaining and Building Self-Esteem in Children with Special Health Care Needs(American Academy of Pediatrics) - http://www.medem.com/MedLB/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZO43KT8FC&sub_cat=107
- Students with Chronic Illnesses: Guidance for Families, Schools and Students(National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - Links to PDF - http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/lung/asthma/guidfam.htm
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Dealing with a Health Condition(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_mind/problems/deal_chronic_illness.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/mente/deal_chronic_illness_esp.html
- AIDS--Living with AIDS - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/aidslivingwithaids.html
- Cancer--Living with Cancer - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/cancerlivingwithcancer.html
- Mental Health and Behavior - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/mentalhealthandbehavior.html